Right Choice
by VannuroRB
Summary: Right choice: The right choice is decided by what is considered morally right to the individual. It is justified with no outside interference and no affiliation to the situation that requires the right choice. The right choice is required for the benefit of thousands upon thousands of people.


Do you ever have those times where you go to watch one anime, and then in the suggestion list, there's that one title that bugs you the hell out until you say "You know what, I'm gonna watch it!" And then you half expect it to be crap, but then you wonder why haven't you watched it sooner?

I've been having a marathon of anime, and it made me want to write more OVA's for myself. Crazy, huh?

I suggest pulling up a nice playlist of all your favourite songs; this one's a doozy.

* * *

Right Choice~

_Right choice: The right choice is decided by what is considered morally right to the individual. It is justified with no outside interference and no affiliation to the situation that requires the right choice. The right choice is required for the benefit of thousands upon thousands of people._

_Best choice: The best choice is decided by what the individual desires. It is created from impulse, anger, fear, and many emotions that hinder a person's judgment. More often than likely, the best choice will result in the death of innocent people. The best choice must be avoided at all costs._

Yugi laid in bed for a few moments, watching the murky morning light slip in between a crack in the curtains, and ran across the ceiling and walls of the bedroom. It gave a stark distinction to the dreary grey bedroom Yugi was used to seeing every morning, but it did little to amuse him. Outside the window, the morning was quiet, usually deemed as a good sign. But that morning, Yugi could not help but wonder how long it had been since he had heard a bird's song, and if he would ever hear one again.

With little else to do, Yugi got himself up from bed, and dressed himself for the day. His clothes were starting to look worn-out, and even after putting them on, Yugi could feel the uncleanliness they had from the constant use. He made a mental note to find some way to clean them, or find a new pair of clothes.

Yugi left the bedroom, and headed to the living area of the apartment. The apartment was small, with only one bedroom, and the living room and kitchen combined. The furniture had been left behind thankfully, but Yugi did not know how to keep it in good condition, so had to watch it deteriorate in front of his eyes.

As Yugi stepped over his belongings scattered on the floor, he stood in front of the large living room window, and pushed back the curtains to let the light wash over the room. With the intruding light, Yami gave a groan, and pulled the blanket over him as he huddled further into the sofa.

"Morning already?" He asked, sounding rather disappointed in having to ask it.

"Clearly" Yugi replied, and tiptoed his way over the discarded junk.

Another groan came from the lump under the blanket, but it slowly began to rise, sliding off the covers to reveal a rather dreary and still sleepy Yami.

Yugi and Yami had met several months prior. Their meeting was unfortunate in most cases; Yugi had been the one to rescue Yami. Upon returning to his home—the one he abandoned a month afterwards—he stumbled across Yami, terrified and lost, and fighting for his life against monsters. With little hesitation, Yugi could only grab Yami and pull him away from the predicament, and hid him within his home.

The creatures had been named many things by the public; demons, monsters, aliens, Kuro, various names that fitted their image well. Whatever they were, they plagued the land, and brought society to their knees. They hunted humans, and while the army and the government were doing their best, there was no guarantee protection for those who had no weapons. Hiding and fleeing were their only option.

And that was what Yugi did, along with Yami, moving from one location to another to avoid being caught by the monsters. Perhaps Yami was not the best company, but he was company nonetheless.

Yami was a strange person. Yami Aten was his full name, his age was unknown, but guessed to be somewhere in his early twenties, and was a rather childish individual considering the circumstances. Whenever Yugi tried to ask about his past, Yami often replied with that he could not remember, but Yugi knew it was a lie. The way he hesitated, the way he turned his head away to avoid eye contact, it was a strong hint to a lie. It was not that he could not remember, but rather that he did not want to. While Yugi knew it was not his business to know, he could not help but wonder.

He and this stranger had been moving from place to place for months, and he still knew so little about him, it made him weary to trust him. Why would a normal person hide their background, unless there was a reason? Yugi often thought of the idea of Yami being an escaped criminal, having been in the wrong place at the wrong time. If that were true, what did Yami do? Rob? Murder? Was Yami really a person Yugi could trust in a fragile situation?

But then he thought, if Yami had the capacity to do evil, he would have done it by then. Once a man murders, he has the ability to do it again, free of guilt. If Yami wanted to harm Yugi, then he was taking an awfully long time to do so. But with the speculation of criminal activity gone, it only made Yami more perplexing.

"I'm hungry Yugi" Yami whined, watching Yugi place himself in the kitchen already.

"Mm" Came Yugi's response, searching through the cupboards and fridge for the remaining food.

"I want meat" Yami added, hugging his knees.

"Mm" Yugi responded, and found some left over bacon, figuring that it would quell Yami's need for meat.

Yami noticed the familiar packaging, and smiled brightly "I like my bacon chewy, not crispy!"

_Does he think I'm his mother or something?_ Yugi thought irritated to himself.

Yugi cooked by himself, while Yami kept sat on the sofa with the blanket wrapped around him, both keeping quiet so they could listen to the small radio on the counter. The broadcast was solemn, counting off the names of the recently deceased, though the list was, thankfully, short. As the broadcast came to an end, the food reached the point of cooked, so Yugi served it up for him and Yami.

The meal was not grand; two eggs and two slices of bacon shared between them, and a batch of the rice they had. It was not splendid, but it was sufficient. With enough coercing, Yami sat down at the chipped table with Yugi, sitting across from each other. After saying their thanks for the food, they began to eat, Yugi more eager than Yami.

Yami hesitated for a moment, before picking up his chopsticks and began moving the food on his plate around. Yugi did not dare to look up to see what he was doing, knowing it would no doubt be something foolish, so focused on getting his hunger satisfied.

"Hey Yugi" Yugi lifted his gaze up from his food to Yami, seeing a wide, proud grin on his face "Look! It's a face".

Yugi looked down at Yami's plate which he had gently tilted up. The egg had been split into two and was made to represent eyes; the yolk was left to dribble like mucus, and tainted the white rice it rested on, which was portrayed as the skin. Underneath the egg, the bacon strip had been curled upwards to create a reddish, happy smile.

Yugi stared at the breakfast face a while longer, before sighing and saying "Haven't you heard of the phrase 'act your age'?"

Yami pouted, and placed his plate down again "Haven't you heard of the saying 'smiling is the way to go'?"

"No. I've never heard of that".

After the two had eaten—Yami more reluctant to destroy the face he created—Yugi cleaned up the plates with the little water they had, and the day began just like the others they had spent together.

Though the furniture had been left behind, it seemed that the previous occupant was a serious individual, and left little behind in the form of entertainment. With no electricity it rendered the electrical appliances, such as the TV, useless in their current situation. They counted it a blessing that they still had gas and water. There were a few books lying around that they could read, but Yugi was too busy making sure they were safe for the day, and Yami had little patience to sit down and read. Yami made it his job to rummage around the apartment, but with only three rooms, the duty became pointless after a certain time.

To most people they would call it boredom, and even Yami complained several times that he was bored, but Yugi could not. In his current situation, he could not compare it to a normal life, nor would he want to.

As soon as it got dark, Yugi and Yami retired to their beds, due to the darkness rendering any sort of normal activity redundant. Yami was on the sofa in the living room again, while Yugi had the bed in the bedroom.

Yugi laid in his bed quietly, staring up at the ceiling again, still not having adjusted to an early sleeping time. He let his mind wander, and began to wonder if Yami was still awake, but avoided checking on him in fear that he would disturb his sleep.

After an hour of staying in bed, Yugi could hear movement outside, before a loud scrape ran down the front door. Yugi froze in his bed, holding back his breath, as he listened to the sound of the monster at the door, desperately trying to get in as it snorted heavily. It must have smelt the food, Yugi thought, or perhaps themselves. Whatever its reason for being at their door, it seemed adamant to get inside. Yugi prayed that the door would keep strong, knowing Yami was only inches away from the door itself, so he would be an easy meal for the beast if it broke in.

However, there was a distant howl which silenced the scrabbling at the door, returning the call before leaving with a last shuddering thud against the apartment.

Yugi still kept rigid, worried that more would follow the previous inquisitive intruder, and that if he did anything sudden it would give away their location. But after a while, it returned to a silent night again, giving way for a more carefree evening.

When Yugi heard a squeak, he bolted up in his bed, and turned to his door. In the dim light, Yugi could make out that the bedroom door was open, and hidden within the shadows was Yami. Seeing the male, Yugi breathed an easy sigh, and let go of his covers which he had gripped tightly out of shock.

"Did you hear it?" Yami asked in a whisper.

Yugi nodded, though figured that Yami would not be able to see him nodding in the darkness "Yeah. It must've smelt the food or something".

Yami gave a hum, and shied his face away, casting more shadows across his face "It was scary…"

"Yeah…" Yugi glanced out of the window briefly, before scooting along in his bed and pushing back the covers, patting the space that was left open and bare "You can sleep with me tonight. It'll keep us both easy".

Yami said nothing as he stepped into the room, he shut the door behind him and walked over to the bed, gladly crawling in and tugging the covers over him. Once Yami was settled and his head thoroughly buried into the pillow, Yugi tipped back so he laid down, and pulled the covers up to reach their necks.

"You were scared too?" Yami queried.

"Yeah. I mean…it could have broken in" Yugi explained.

"I don't think I've ever seen you scared before".

Yugi gave a small chuckle "Well, it wouldn't be smart if we were both terrified, someone has to keep a level-head, am I right?"

"Yeah, I suppose so" Yami agreed "Still; it's pretty admirable, you being able to keep cool with everything going to hell".

"If you say so" Yugi then turned his head to Yami "Though, I think this is the first time I've seen you scared, or anything other than happy to be honest".

Yami chuckled as well, and presented a smile "Well…I guess it's because I want to be happy" Yami gave a sigh and pressed his face further into the pillow "If I am to die…I'd like to be happy. I've…I've always feared dying alone and sad, so I was happy to find you Yugi, and I thought I'd do my best to make us happy despite having to hide away from the monsters. But…I guess that bothers you, right?"

Yugi clutched tighter to the sheets, tears running over his cheeks, as he tried to restrain any kind of noise that would indicate to his weeping.

"Yugi?" Yami shifted closer, forcing Yugi to turn his head away in shame "Are you crying?"

"I-I'm sorry" Yugi apologised, his voice shaking as more tears streamed down his face "I-I always thought…y-you were an imbecile. A-Always so…o-obtuse with reality or something. But…you were just trying to look out for me, give me nothing but good times. And how do I repay you? With rudeness, being curt, and thinking you didn't have any feelings. I'm such an idiot. When this whole thing started I…I told myself I was going to put everyone else first but I…I lost that…"

"Yugi" Yami shuffled closer to Yugi, and slipped his arms around Yugi, pulling his body closer to cradle it. Yugi's tears stopped, and his cheeks burned up, as he felt the warmth of Yami's chest forcibly push against his face "I'm not trying to make you cry, I want you to be happy" Yami's hand reached up to Yugi's hair, patting and stroking it in a rhythmic motion, like a mother would do to soothe her child "You were only trying to protect me before, and I'm really grateful for it, I'm sorry if I was ever a bother to you. But, please, don't cry. For me, okay?"

"Uh…Yami…"

"Mm?"

"We're…" Yugi's face turned deep red, and barely managed to utter out "Pretty close right now…"

Yami gave a perplexed expression, before staring down at their bodies, noticing that they were indeed close together, with their bodies near to intertwined thanks to Yami's intimate embrace.

With a yelp, Yami let go of Yugi, and both rolled to the sides of the bed facing away from each other. Their faces were flushed bright red, and they did their best to shy their embarrassment away from the other, while their bodies curled up into themselves.

_What was that about? _Yugi thought, his hand reaching up to cover his mouth _Just now, my chest was beating fast. Why…?_

"Um…Yugi" Yami spoke up "Do you…want to play a game tomorrow?"

"Oh, I didn't know there were games here" Yugi replied curiously.

"I don't think there is" Yami answered "But…we can make something up. You know, to pass the time. If you want to, that is".

Yugi gave a smile, and rested his head again "Sure. I'll play a game…"

"Great! Well" Yami gave a yawn, and shifted in the bed "We best get some sleep, right?"

"Right" Yugi closed his eyes, hoping to encourage sleep to come by _That's right. I can't think about that sort of thing right now. There's…too much going on to think about that type of thing._

When Yugi awoke the next morning, he rolled over in his bed, only to find Yami missing from his side of the bed. Rubbing his eyes to rid himself of tiredness, Yugi got out of his bed, and went to search for Yami. He did not need to go far, for as soon as he left the bedroom, he heard movement from the living area.

He stood at the corner and watched Yami; he was knelt to the floor, a marker in hand that he used on a tatami mat. He drew shaky boxes, and had terrible handwriting when making notes in each box, but seemed to be happy nonetheless. He continued drawing a few moments, before he looked up, and noticed Yugi watching him from the corner. He gave a smile, and resumed marking again.

"I found this dice" Yami held out his other hand, opening it up to present a red six sided die, with the one facing upwards "But no board or anything. So I thought I'd make one on this mat, we can use things from the kitchen as the characters, okay?"

Yugi gave a hum, before looking down at the mat "We could have used that mat you know".

"Eh!?"

As Yami finished off his mat, and did his best to tidy up its appearance, Yugi decided to cook them breakfast and allowed the two of them to eat while they played. However, their food resource had run down to their stock of rice, which had dwindled lower than Yugi had anticipated.

Once the rice had been cooked and Yami had set up the game for them, they sat on opposite sides of the mat, and took turns to move their pawns and eat their breakfast. After an hour or so of playing, they had eaten their breakfast and put the bowls aside, and had driven through most of the game Yami had created. While it was fun for the most part, Yugi's mind drifted to their predicament with the food, and how they would achieve in getting more.

"Yami" Yugi said, interrupting their game "I think we should move again".

Yami's elated expression morphed into sadness, distressed by the idea of having to leave their home "But why?"

"Because it's not safe for us to stay in one place for too long" Yugi explained, taking his turn to move his piece on the mat "Besides, we're running out of food. We have to go somewhere else now".

Yami stared at Yugi as he took his turn in the game, keeping his broken expression apparent "Where will we go?"

"I don't know. I was thinking about going down south; the winter will be coming soon, and since we don't have anything to keep us warm during the winter, it'll be a tad warmer down south then here".

Yami hung his head, thinking over the situation briefly, before shaking his head "No. I don't want to go".

"Why not?"

"If we leave…we might get killed".

"Yami, we don't have much choice" Yugi reasoned "If we stay here for too long, we'll be discovered anyway. Besides, if the monsters don't get us, we'll starve to death, we have no other option".

Yami said nothing, causing Yugi to sigh and look down at their game "Well, if you won't move today, we have to find food at least. We can go look for some right now if you want. It'll be better if we both go, we can watch each other's backs and all".

Yami shook his head more vigorously "No! If we go outside then we…"

Yugi glanced to the kitchen before standing up, picking up the bowl as he did so "Well if you don't want to come with me, then that's fine, but we need food Yami. I suppose if I go alone, I'll be easily hidden".

Yami watched Yugi walk to the kitchen, stacking his bowl by the side of the sink for later, and already preparing for a, no doubt, hard expedition.

"But!" Yami spoke up, getting Yugi to look back "What about our game?"

"What about it?" Yugi reiterated.

"We haven't finished it yet".

"Oh…well, we can finish it when I get back, okay? I'd rather go now then later when it's getting dark".

"But-!"

"Think of it as a break, okay?" Yugi tried to reassure as he paced around the apartment, collecting a few items he felt would aid him "You can take this time to make a new strategy, or cheat".

"I won't cheat!" Yami proclaimed, pouting as he did so.

Yugi laughed and headed to the front door, slipping on his shoes when he reached the foyer "I know you wouldn't. We'll continue as soon as I get back, okay?"

Though Yami was clearly distraught and pained with the idea of letting Yugi leave on his own, he could not come up with a compelling argument that would keep Yugi in the apartment, so turned his head and muttered out a small "Okay".

"Right" Yugi opened the door carefully and quietly, allowing a small crack to act as his peephole, and took a look outside. It was clear, and ghostly silent, which seemed to indicate a good sign. Yugi stepped out to take a better look, checking the streets below him, before looking back inside the apartment "I'll be an hour tops. See you later Yami".

"Bye" As Yugi shut the door behind him, Yami gave a groan, and rested back against the sofa, praying that Yugi would return home safe and sound.

Contrary to what Yugi had anticipated, the streets were as abandoned as the other places in town. Walking down the middle of the street, alone and with no evident sign of recent life, it reminded Yugi of a horror movie he had seen once by accident. Though he had not watched much of it, the particular scene he had witnessed of the protagonist ambling through a deserted town seemed so terrifying to Yugi; the idea of being a lone survivor in an empty world seemed daunting, but the reality seemed more disheartening then the fiction.

Once Yugi had reached the end of the street, there was a small convenience store on the corner, something he had noticed when they first arrived in the neighbourhood. He approached the store quietly, making sure he did not make too much sound on the pavement, before peering in through the window.

Barren; the shop was as empty as the outside world, but with a stark difference, consisting of all the products missing from the shelves. With a groan, Yugi stepped inside of the store, and tried to cling onto hope that something was left behind while walking along the stands.

"Should've seen this coming" Yugi muttered to himself, before heading to the counter, and noticing a door leading to further storage. He climbed over the tops and tried the door, but it refused to move, fighting against the amount of pressure he forced onto it "Locked" He said when he gave up.

Then there was a bang. Loud and piercing, it startled Yugi, and immediately sent him to the floor out of fear. Several more similar noises followed after it, and Yugi could distinguish them as gunshots, which were growing increasingly closer.

Yugi crawled on his hands and knees, shuffling past the counter and to the shop window. He rested up on his knees, and slowly brought his head up into view, looking out onto the street around him. Though the gunshots were rapidly approaching, Yugi could not see anyone, and grew all the more wary about what was happening.

A couple of moments passed, and the gunshots were so loud Yugi could have sworn they were fired right next to him. He had thought about making a run for it, dreading that it could have been a type of bandit, and would harm him if he was discovered. But right as Yugi was about to move, a man came running down the street, and Yugi ducked lower to hide himself.

The man stopped in front of the store, gun held out in front of him, as he shot at an unknown victim. He was dressed in a thick and heavy uniform, one that Yugi did not recognise, and had a belt with a holster for a gun and knife. A large sack was swung over his shoulder, and his expression was of pure horror. Whoever the man was, he was fighting for his life, Yugi was certain of that.

A moment later, his gun fell silent, and Yugi heard him curse as he attempted to switch ammunition, but was clumsy as his body shook. In almost an instant, a monster came swooping at him.

The grey, humanoid creature was one Yugi easily recognised, having seen them bring terror among his land. They were the ones that brought the world to its knees.

The monster stood but a few seconds in front of the man, taunting him with its presence, before biting into his arm. The man screamed in pain, stumbling back so he fell to the ground, with the monster still hooked to his arm. He yelled, and pleaded for the monster to let him go, but the creature continued to keep attached to him, and sunk its teeth further into his skin. He tried to fight it off with his bare hands, but it was too strong for him, and tore into his skin. He tussled with it for a few moments before reaching for his knife, struggling to pull it out of its sheath, before swinging it at the monster and cutting its neck.

The monster screeched as pulses of blood poured out of its neck, and finally falling silent as the knife sliced out from the other side, separating the head from its body. The corpse fell to the side, its head still hanging from the man's arm, but with no motive to kill anymore.

The man took a few moments to catch his breath, but ripped the head off of his arm, letting blood leak profusely from his arm. Yugi waited where he was, spectating from afar, and waiting to see if more monsters would appear. But after a while, nothing happened, apart from the man attempting to patch up his wound with his hand, and doing a miserable job at it. For the most part, he seemed like he was safe, and Yugi was able to help the man out however he could.

Even though he wanted to aid the man, he was wary, knowing that the man still had access to his gun and knife, and in he was in great pain, which could influence his decision to harm Yugi. He could not guarantee his own safety when the man could hurt him with ease.

As Yugi debated about helping the man, his eyes wandered to the bag he had been carrying, now laying discarded during the fight. It was open, and displayed the bright contents inside. Boxes, tins, packages, an array of food types were nestled in his bag. It seemed that he was a scavenger like Yugi was, and that whether he died or not, the sack of food was easy to reach.

Yugi shook the thought away as he stood up from his hiding spot _I can't start thinking like that. _He thought_ It doesn't matter if he has food or not, I need to help him._

Yugi rushed over to the man, seeing the red liquid of blood smear over his clothes, and continue to pour out from his wound. He had been preoccupied with his laceration, that he had not noticed Yugi approach until he was by his side.

The two stared at each other, a word not going by them, as they inspected the other closely. After a minute of silence, the man gave a groan, and clasped at his wound again. Assured that he was in no danger, Yugi knelt by his side, and examined the scar as well. The teeth had dug in deep, and had torn the skin a little in the struggle, causing much blood loss. With little knowledge on how to deal with such a severe wound, Yugi began to doubt if he could help him at all.

"Well?" The man finally spoke up "Are you going to mug me or not?"

Yugi gave the man a perplexed stare "I-I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you".

The man seemed unconvinced at first, but after a few moments of internal debate, decided that Yugi was an ally.

"So what are you? Some sort of lone survivor?" The man queried, making sure his hand was grasped tightly around his wound.

"I suppose so" Yugi studied the streams of blood escaping from in between the man's fingers "I don't have much…but we have some painkillers, and bandages, and other stuff that can help".

"Oh really? At what cost?" The man asked, tilting his head to nod at the bag.

Yugi only shot a quick look to the bag before turning to the man again "That doesn't matter to me. I only want to help you".

The man gave a long stare at Yugi, before releasing a sigh of pain, and let go of his wound momentarily to push himself on his feet "If you can".

"Here" Yugi picked up the knife and gun from the ground, thinking that the man would feel safer with some form of protection. Once the man holstered his weapons, and picked up the bag with great difficulty, Yugi held the man up to give him support "It's not far, you won't have to walk too long".

"Heh…good" The man said breathlessly, and seemed glad that he had someone to lean against, as he let Yugi lead him down the street.

Yami was sat scrunched up by the mat, one arm wrapped tightly around his knees, while his other hand was lightly tapping each uneven square he had drawn. He tried to distract his uneasy mind by formulating a strategy for when Yugi returned, just like Yugi had suggested, but the idea had already been fulfilled long ago. Now, he was reduced to reciting a song in his head, while childishly poking each box. All he could do was wait.

He then heard thudding outside, and with a wash of panic, clamped tightly to his body to force himself still. But when there were sounds of voices, he eased himself out of his stiff posture, and rose from his spot. As soon as the voices were directly outside, the door opened, and Yugi hobbled in with the man still leaning against him.

"Ah, Yami, I'm back" Yugi said, pulling the man in, and leading him across the room "We have an emergency Yami".

Yami stepped aside as Yugi brought the man closer, herding him to the sofa, where he sat down with a groan, and grabbed his wound once more. As Yugi checked on the wound again, Yami looked down at the mat they treaded on, the once pale colour now tarnished with mud and specks of blood. He gave a look of dismay before backing up, only stopping when his back touched the corner, and slid down to his feet and waited for Yugi to patch up the man.

Yugi studied the depth of the wound, giving a sound as he swiped away a drop of blood "I-I don't know if it needs stitches…not that we have any anyway".

"Don't waste it if you do" The man said, wiping his large hand over the wound, smearing the blood further up his arm "Just bandage me up, and see what happens, alright?"

"Okay, sure. Yami, can you get the medical stuff from the bathroom?" When there was no answer, Yugi looked over his shoulder, seeing Yami glumly huddled against the corner. With a sigh, Yugi hurried to the bathroom, and took out the small box of medical supplies they had gathered. It consisted of a roll of bandages, a half box of pain killers, and some steriliser along with some cleaning pads.

Yugi hurried back to the man, kneeling in front of him, and taking out the items they had stashed away "Okay, can you remove your jacket please?"

The man gave a hum, and awkwardly shrugged off his jacket with one hand, trying to take it slow when it came to his damaged arm. With his protective jacket removed, he was left with only his sleeveless shirt and with better access to his wound.

"Okay, I should clean it first" Yugi took the bottle and a pad, soaking it with the steriliser, then looked up at the man "Do you want to take painkillers first? It might take away the stinging…"

"I'll take them afterwards" The man reassured, turning his body slightly so Yugi had an easy time "I'm sure it can't be anything worse then what I just had happen".

Yugi gave a nod, and shuffled closer on his knees, taking hold of the man's arm to keep him in position. He gave the man an apologetic look, regretting what he had to do. He wielded the pad closer and closer, before finally touching the bite, and dabbing it to clean away the blood. The man hissed in pain, and Yugi noticed his spare hand clutching tightly at his trouser legs, making Yugi feel even guiltier.

Yugi tried his best to be quick in cleaning the wound up, wiping away as much of the blood as he could, and giving the open flesh a couple of wipes to make sure it was clean. Once he had done that, he took out the bandages, and began to tightly wrap up the bleeding wound.

"You're a smart kid" The man commented, now giving a smile after a while of restraint frowning "Who taught you to do this?"

"No one really" Yugi answered as he tied a knot in the bandage "It was just something I learnt, in case it ever happened to someone I know".

"Intuition, I like that" The man shifted back so he faced frontwards again, and fleetingly admired his bandaged arm as if it were a tattoo "I'm sorry if I came off as rude before. A lot had happened, and I wasn't thinking straight, so I apologise" He pursed his lips quickly, and smiled again "My name's Shino. What's yours?"

"I'm Yugi" Yugi introduced, then turned to look behind him, staring at Yami who had remained in his position "And he's Yami".

"Yami? It's nice to meet you Yami".

Yami gave no response, and with his head resting on his knees, turned his head away from them. Shino gave a hum, perplexed by the reaction, before turning to Yugi "Yugi, can I have some water? I'd like to take those painkillers now".

"Oh, sure" Yugi got up from the floor and hurried to the kitchen, picking out the best cleaned cup there was to offer, and filled it up with cold water. As he returned, Shino was already pushing out two pills for him to take, and when Yugi held out the cup of water, gladly took it and swallowed pills and water in two gulps.

As he finished off the drink for good manners, Shino glanced at the sack that was sat beside him, and pulled it closer "Well, I suppose I owe you something, for at least being considerate. Help yourselves".

"Really?" Yugi moved closer to investigate the bag, knowing most of the brands inside.

"Sure. After all, you're technically civilians, and this food is for civilians, so there's no wrongdoing, am I right?"

"Civilians?" Yugi repeated with a curious tone "Aren't you a civilian then?"

"Did the clothes not tip you off?" Shino chuckled, grabbing his bulky jacket, and waving it in front of him "I'm in the army. I'm from a particular group that's sent out to collect supplies for civilians; food, medical supplies, clothes, whatever's needed, me and my men go out and find them".

"Oh but…there was only you?"

Shino lost his smile at the question, and after placing his jacket over his legs, bowed his head to hide his face "No…the others were with me but…" Shino sucked in a deep breath, attempting to steady his broken tone "We were ambushed by those…things. Most of them were killed, but some of them still fought. I…I ran away however. Like a coward, I abandoned them to save myself; maybe I should have died back there too".

"You were scared, you didn't know what to do, it's not your fault".

Shino looked up at Yugi, staring at him with dead, plain eyes "You've never had to make a decision like that, have you Yugi?" Shino asked "One where you've had to consider others wellbeing, even if it puts your own at risk. It's never easy, trying to make the right decision, so don't try to sympathise until you have been put in the same situation".

Yugi said nothing, submitting to his own inexperience for a few moments, before turning to the sack and taking a few food items out "I'll…make dinner now".

Yugi took the food to the kitchen, and looked back at Yami, seeing that he was still huddled by the corner. He approached his friend quietly, waiting until Yami decided to shift his head back, barely looking at Yugi's legs.

"Yami, do you…want to help make dinner?" Yugi offered.

Yami kept quiet, but eventually mumbled out "We didn't finish our game…"

"Oh, I'm sorry, but you saw that it was a genuine emergency, I couldn't play with you, understand?" Yami still said nothing, and after giving Yugi's knees a long glare, finally turned his head away to break their conversation. Yugi sighed at Yami's stubbornness "Fine. Don't help then".

With that, Yugi returned to the kitchen setting to work, leaving Yami to childishly sulk in the corner. Shino tried not to talk to Yami, getting the feeling that Yami would refuse to communicate back, so opted to chat to Yugi while he cooked. Yugi appreciated the socialising, and happily chatted back to Shino about meaningless things.

When Yugi had finished the cooking, it was starting to get late, and the sunlight was starting to turn orange. Yugi laid the table for three, and just like before, Yami sat opposite Yugi while Shino took up the right side of the table. They were silent while they ate at first, enjoying the meal, while Yugi observed Shino's bandaged arm that he tried to avoid using.

"How long do you think it'll take to heal it?" Yugi asked curiously.

Shino looked to his arm, and gave a shrug, which made him wince in pain "Not sure".

"Oh. See, me and Yami were thinking about moving" Yugi explained "Down south, to avoid the winter. Would you like to come along?"

"Why don't you just go to the evacuation zone?" Shino suggested.

"Evacuation zone?"

Shino nodded, and ate some more food before continuing to speak "It's a section the government has blocked off, civilians stay there and are looked after. You should go there, you'd be a lot safer and you wouldn't have to go off scavenging".

"The monsters don't try to break in?"

"Try they do" Shino retorted "But none have succeeded. Take a shotgun to their neck, and the evacuation zone is safe again. Trust me, it's the best place you could be".

"Wow. Sounds like people are more organised then I had expected" Yugi gave a smile "You can take us there then, right?"

"Sure. If I survive that long".

"We're not going".

Yugi turned to Yami, seeing him give a stern gaze to his food, as he idly poked it around

"Oh? And why not?" Yugi asked.

"I told you" Yami shot a look to Shino quickly, disliking how he was immediately listening to their conversation, but continued nonetheless "We'll get killed if we leave".

"We still have that risk here Yami" Yugi reasoned sternly, starting to get annoyed by Yami's rebellion "At least if we make it to the evacuation zone, we can be safe!"

"I'm not leaving this apartment!" Yami protested.

"So you want us to die? Is that it Yami?! Why can't you use your brain for once?!"

Yami dropped his fork and rose from the table, keeping his face hidden as he did so; he stormed to the bedroom, and slammed the door behind him as loudly as he could. Yugi and Shino sat in silence for a few moments, before breathing an irritated sigh, and began sharing the food between him and Shino.

"You two argue a lot?" Shino asked.

"Only recently" Yugi answered, and continued eating. Shino left the topic where it was, not wanting to cause anger between them, and resumed eating as well.

Once the meal was consumed, Yugi had only the sofa to offer to Shino to sleep on, which he reassured would suit his needs fine. With Shino as comfortable as he could be, Yugi left Shino to sleep in peace, while he tackled the sulking Yami.

Yugi shut the door silently behind him, keeping his gaze to Yami, who was laid out on the bed with his back facing Yugi. He seemed to still be exercising his choice of ignoring everyone. Yugi walked over to the bed, laid down on the spare side, and stared at the wall ahead of him. He decided to wait for a while, curious to see if Yami would break the silence first, or if it was Yugi's duty to do so.

"I was using my brain" Yami finally mumbled in a pitiful plea "I just don't want to die yet…"

"I know. I'm sorry for coming off as mean" Yugi apologised, lightly looking over his shoulder at Yami "But you have to realise, we can't keep living in this one apartment for the rest of our lives. Sooner or later, we'll be found, and then what?"

"They won't find us" Yami insisted "They can't see through buildings".

"That's no guarantee Yami. What if we make too much noise or if they smell the food? It's not safe here, no matter how much you try to say otherwise" Yugi gave a sigh and moved his hand backwards, patting around until he came across Yami's hand, and gently took hold of it "I know you must be scared, but it's what we have to do now. It'll be fine because…I'll look after you, okay?"

"But…who will look after you?"

"Well, I guess I'll have to learn to multitask" Yugi joked, giving Yami's hand a small squeeze for comfort "But I know it'll be fine, trust me Yami".

Yami said nothing for a few minutes, but after thinking about it, held tighter to Yugi's hand to return the gesture "I trust you".

Yugi gave a smile, and closed his eyes "Goodnight Yami".

"Night Yugi".

The two slept peacefully for the most part, Yugi often waking up when he heard the monsters prowling outside their window. But after making sure that his hand was still held within Yami's, he felt secure once again, and found it easy to fall asleep again.

Yami was the first to wake, with a soft blink to his eyes he looked to Yugi, and their still connecting hands with a grateful smile. After watching Yugi, Yami lifted his head when he heard several voices, before fading into a hissing static. Curious about the noise, Yami eased his hand out of Yugi's, and got up to investigate the source of the commotion.

He quietly left the bedroom, and treaded carefully to the living room, glancing over to the sofa. Shino was already awake, propped up against the arm of the couch, while the radio was in his hand. The machine spat violently at him as he turned knobs, and attempted to tune it into an unknown channel, but had little luck with it. After fighting with the radio for a few moments, Shino gave up with a frustrated sigh, and rested it against his knees as it sung a violent song of distortion.

It took a couple of moments, but Shino soon turned around, spotting Yami leaning against the wall corner watching him. He gave a cheerful smile "Morning kiddo" He greeted, then lifted the radio "Did I wake you?"

Yami shook his head, retaining his silence "Oh. Well that's good" Shino returned to fiddling with the radio, despite knowing it was a useless action "I saw this, and couldn't help myself. Thought I could try tuning in to the army radios, see if anyone's noticed I'm gone and tell them where I am. Ah" Shino placed the radio down, breaking a humorous smile, as he tiled his head back "I'm an idiot. It wouldn't have worked; this is a one way radio".

"Hm" Yami hummed in agreement, wondering how Shino could have mistaken the type of radio.

Shino set the radio down on the floor, leaving it for good this time, and idly glanced around the room. His hands and fingers twitched inconsistently, not out of boredom, but more out of nerves. Though he seemed to be fine with their company the previous day; Yami could not help but wonder if there was something else upsetting him.

"Must be tough" Shino said, attempting to strike up a conversation with the other "Hiding from those monsters and all. I know it's a pain at the evacuation zone; day in, day out, they keep coming in, attempting to break in. Let me tell you kid, putting a shotgun shell in one of their necks can be one of the most satisfying things you could ever do".

"I wouldn't know" Yami muttered out, crossing his arms over his chest, like a parent would do when their child had concocted a lie "I'm not a very violent person".

"Ah. Is that why you stayed here yesterday?" Seeing Yami shift to show his unease, Shino held up his hands in a show of submission and apology "I'm not judging you here kid. Like you said, you're not a violent person, and with all this shit going down, I'd imagine any sane man would rather hide than fight. I just thought it odd that you wouldn't accompany your friend, in such dangerous times and all".

"I'd draw attention" Yami admitted "They'd…like to kill me".

"Really? I've learnt that those demons only attack if you aggravate them. Are you planning on aggravating them?"

Yami shot him a glare, chewing on his answer for a few moments, before asking instead "Then why'd they attack you?"

Shino gave a breathless laugh, though Yami could tell it was not going to be a humorous joke "Stumbled into a nest would you believe? Who'd of thunk that things like those could have potential to be mummy and daddy?"

Shino rocked his shoulders back and forth, sliding himself down the couch, until the nape of his neck touched the arm of the sofa "Hey, do you know why these monsters are about?"

Yami felt his back tense up at the suspicion, and shook his head "No, why should I?"

"I meant a theory" Shino corrected, raising his brow up "Unless you do know".

"N-No…of course not" Yami turned his head away, attempting to ease his body up by taking deep breaths.

Shino watched him a few moments, before tilting his head up, staring at the ceiling above him "There's a lot of theories going on about why these monsters are around" Shino explained, his hand lifting up, and rolling around on his wrist in a show of boredom "Some say it's pollution, or that they're mutated animals from a science experiment. Others say it's a zombie apocalypse. There was one theory I passed off as stupid, but, due to recent events, I can't quite disagree with it. Some people think they're our sin, finally attaining a physical form, and that they've come to drag the sinful to hell".

Shino let the theory sink into Yami's mind before carrying on again "I'm not a religious man, so I thought it was just hysterical talk. But, hell, I haven't exactly been a good boy myself, and then this shit happens…it makes more sense than a zombie apocalypse or mutation, am I right? Still, if it is because of sin, it took a hell of a long time to correct us right?" Shino gave a hum, massaging his bandaged arm when it hurt "Someone must've cracked open the big tin of no-good to get us in this mess, am I right?" When Yami gave no response, Shino tilted his head to stare at Yami. His head was hung low to hide his expression, and his arms which he had kept crossed were now desperately grabbing his body, almost as if his body would explode if he did not restrain it "Right kiddo?"

Yami was pulled out of his thoughts, and looked up at Shino "Yeah…uh, I'm going to go back to sleep" Yami said, taking a few steps back "Still tired and all".

"Alright, I'll try to keep quiet for you two" Shino gave a small wave as Yami returned to the bedroom "See you in a while".

Yami gave a small smile at the comment as a response, and let himself back into the bedroom. With the door shut behind him, Yami looked over to Yugi, who was still sleeping, and sat by his side on the bed. Yugi was unmoved from his previous position, and was undisturbed by Yami's presence, giving Yami the sense of privacy that he wanted despite having another person in the room.

_Sin, huh? _Yami thought to himself, keeping his eyes firmly on Yugi. _Am I really that bad of a person? Am I really that sinful? I just thought…_

Yugi gave a groan in his sleep, and curled his body up, as he adjusted his head to rest slightly off the pillow. Once comfortable, Yugi remained asleep. Yami waited a few moments, cautious that Yugi would wake up, but found his caution pass as Yugi slept soundly. As Yugi did sleep, Yami reached out to brush back some of his hair, before trapping some of his locks and stroking them like a precious jewel.

_Well, if I am sinful, then what does it matter?_ Yami moved closer to Yugi, before leaning down, and placing a kiss on the side of his head. _I doubt repenting will cure my problem. I might as well do what I set out for from the beginning; enjoy my life._

After taking his lips away, Yami checked to make sure Yugi had not been disturbed, but when seeing him continue to sleep, continued to litter his skin with a trail of kisses down to his neck. The action finally seeped through to Yugi, and as he opened his eyes tiredly, felt the warmth of Yami's lips grace his skin.

When he realised there was someone on top of him, Yugi rolled over and forced his hand forward, pressing it on Yami's chest and pushing him away. Surprised to see his friend on top of him, Yugi gave a perplexed stare, but kept his hand between his and Yami's body.

"Yami? Wh-What are you doing?" Yugi questioned.

Yami said nothing, just continued to stare down at Yugi, watching his perplexed expression slowly morph to worry. They shared their gazes for a few moments, before Yami attempted to lean back down, lips prepped for another kiss. When Yugi realised what Yami was trying to do, Yugi did all he could to keep Yami apart with just his hand, though struggled to keep a safe distance between them under Yami's weight.

"Y-Yami!" Yugi called out to him, hoping to break him out of his stupor, but with little success. Yugi ended up having to turn his head away, afraid that Yami would overpower him soon "Yami! Stop it!"

Yugi threw his hand to Yami, hitting him hard in the face, and slightly knocking him off of Yugi. Seeing his chance to escape, Yugi squirmed out from under Yami's body, and hurried to the bedroom door. Before he left, Yugi looked back at Yami, watching him clasp a hand over his swelling, and gave Yami a look of distrust as he shut the door behind him.

Yugi kept still against the door, finally easing his chest to take deep, fast paced breaths, as he tried to come to terms with what Yami had attempted to do to him. Suddenly, his mind became murky again, unsure of what to think or how to react to anything.

The sound of the door shutting alerted Shino's attention, and in an attempt to see who was outside the bedroom, leaned further over the sofa to spot Yugi outside the door "Morning Yugi".

The sound of Shino's voice made him jump, but managed to break a happy, if somewhat shaky, smile "M-Morning Shino".

"You alright? You look like you've seen a ghost".

"N-No, um…" Yugi moved away from the door, giving it a wary look, as if the wood would come alive and pull him back in "Breakfast?"

"Hm, sure".

With something to do, Yugi took no time to put himself in the kitchen, and began to cook a meal for them to eat. The distraction did little to ease Yugi's mind; since Shino did not converse with Yugi as he cooked, he was allowed to take in the silence, and think to himself as much as his brain allowed. But his thoughts put him in a state of fear, dreading how he would deal with Yami, and even if there was a possibility of them remaining together.

When the meal was served up, Yugi and Shino were sat at the table, with Yami's portion of the food the only sign that Yami was still in the apartment. Shino looked over at the empty spot curiously, before turning back to Yugi.

"The kiddo not eating with us?" Shino queried.

"He knows when the time to eat is" Yugi replied.

Shino gave a hum, and tilted his head to the side "You two are very strange friends, I'll say that much".

"He's not my friend".

"Oh? Then what is he?"

Yugi paused briefly, the food on the end of his fork hanging lifelessly, as he tried to think of the best description fitting Yami. There was a feeling of compassion, no doubt forged by the length of time they had spent together, and that finding a person you are willing to live with in such hard times was difficult to come by. But there was something mysterious about Yami, something he held back for whatever his reason was, and that scared Yugi.

"Stranger" Yugi finally said, settling on his answer "He's…a stranger to me".

"Oh, I see" Shino said nothing for the remainder of the meal, letting the two fill up their stomachs, before continuing to talk again "How did you and the kiddo meet?"

"On the whim" Yugi replied, stacking their plates together "He was being chased, and I just helped out".

"At the start of all this mess?" Yugi nodded "Huh. Interesting".

Yugi turned to Shino "What do you mean?"

"Oh, I was just thinking about every zombie film I watched" Shino chuckled as he rested back, leaning on one arm to support him "You know, the main guy always hooks up with a bunch of people about five or so minutes after the outbreak. They become a group, almost like family. I was just thinking the same is with you and the kiddo, right? You two must be like brothers now, am I right?"

Yugi looked away as he stood up "Suppose so" He murmured, and took the plates to the kitchen area for them to be cleaned.

For the rest of the day, Yami did not leave the bedroom once. Yugi had thought about checking Yami, making sure he was alright and that he was not too badly injured, but as soon as the thought came to his mind, Yugi decided against checking up on him. He wanted to avoid Yami as much as he could during the day, until he was forced to confront him.

Shino kept Yugi company throughout the day, keeping most of the conversation flowing between the two, and doing an unknown job of distracting Yugi from his uneasy thoughts. Shino mostly talked about his line of work, and the theories and observations of the monsters he fought against, a depressing topic Yugi found, but a topic nonetheless. However, conversation did not last long, for when the night drew in fast, Yugi was forced to retire to the bedroom, alone with Yami.

Yugi said his goodnights to Shino, who seemed to notice the apprehension Yugi had, but decided against bugging him too much with questions about it. So as soon as Shino was as comfortable as he was, Yugi left him alone again, and shut the bedroom door behind him.

Yami was once again on the bed, laid on his side, back facing Yugi. It seemed that he did not want to see Yugi, just as much as Yugi did not want to see him.

Yugi took his time to walk over to the bed, making sure that each step was as silent as could be, acting as if he was tiptoeing around a sleeping tiger. Once reaching the bed edge, he sat himself down, and slowly tipped over until his head touched the pillow and he brought his legs up to rest on the sheets.

As soon as Yugi had rested on the bed, Yami moved behind him, quickly rolling over and wrapping his arms tightly around Yugi. The sudden action caused Yugi to tense up, and was almost ready to fight Yami off him again, but the touch of his warm breath against the back of his neck kept him still.

"I'm sorry" Yami apologised, his voice broken and weak, like he had been dehydrated for years. His arms tightened around Yugi, gently cradling his body against his own, while he buried his face into Yugi's neck "I'm so sorry Yugi. I'm sorry".

Yami continued to repeat himself for a while longer, apologising over and over again, with no shift in words or tone at all. Yugi did not stop him. He kept himself still in Yami's arms, listening to the pathetic and childlike plea Yami gave, without interrupting him or doing anything to cause him to stop. Though Yami's arms were beginning to hurt his ribs due to their asphyxiating grip, Yugi did not move them away, only letting his hand slide over Yami's to feel his smooth skin against his.

As Yami's apologies drifted off, and Yugi realised Yami had finally fallen asleep, he took the chance to glance over his shoulder. Seeing Yami's sleeping face once more, it seemed like the morning had never happened, making Yugi regret the ignoring behaviour he had upheld throughout the day. With a sigh, and a tighter hold to Yami's hand, Yugi closed his eyes to follow Yami's lead, and attempt to fall asleep as well.

_When did this happen?_ Yugi thought to himself, linking his fingers between Yami's. _That this person, this living, breathing, life, became so integral to my own life?_

Yami awoke first again. His eyes opened, and he was greeted with the tufts of Yugi's hair, and the skin of his neck. As he composed his tired self, he tried to pull himself away from Yugi, though found the task hard to do so when he realised Yugi had a tighter hold than he did. As he shuffled to the end of the bed, he looked back at Yugi, debating if he should try to go to sleep or do something else. He knew Yugi would be nervous to wake, and since it was by his own hand, he did not want to do anything that would cause Yugi to be fearful again.

He heard movement from within the apartment, and turning his head to the bedroom door, listened closely to hear metal clanging together, as well as other items knocking about. Though Yami knew who it had to be, he still exercised caution as he approached the door, and opened it silently to peer out of it.

He could barely see from the crack he had made, but Yami noticed Shino in the kitchen, searching through the drawers for something. After a while of spying, Yami slid out from the bedroom, and approached the kitchen. Shino continued to rummage around, but when he lifted his head and saw Yami, gave him a small smile.

"Woke you up again?" He asked, shutting one of the drawers.

"Are you looking for something?" Yami bounced back.

"Cigarettes" Shino replied, then held up a toothpick "I need a smoke, but I don't suppose you have them here?" Yami shook his head "Then I'll make do".

Shino put the toothpick in his mouth, the end dangling out like a piece of food, which rolled back and forth along his lips as he played with it. Content with something to keep his mind off of his need for smoking, Shino moved away from the kitchen, keeping his eyes on Yami at all times.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you something, if that's alright?"

Yami shuffled his feet, but nodded nonetheless. The serious voice Shino used made Yami feel uneasy, dreading what Shino wanted from him, not liking the man at all.

"Well, when I was rescued by Yugi" Shino explained, resting against the kitchen counter "I noticed you were still here waiting for him. I found that odd; I figured you two were friends and that you'd want to protect him, no matter what".

"I do!" Yami defended.

"Yet, you let him go on his own" Shino backfired.

"Because…if I went outside…"

"That's also something I noticed" Shino interrupted, moving off of the counter, and stepping closer to Yami "You insist not to leave this apartment, even though I've been telling you the evacuation zone is more secure. There's more to it than just sentimental value, and you're certainly not afraid. Even the most cowardly person would risk moving to a safer place, they would not stick to one place if they felt it was a danger. Why are you so adamant to stay in this crappy apartment?"

"B-Because they can't get in here!"

"And you're so sure of that are you? For someone who does whatever it costs to avoid the monsters, you know an awful lot about them, don't you?"

"That's-! I just…!"

Yami's answer drifted off, his body now shaking at the inquires, and began losing his composure. He felt that if Shino asked one more question, he would crack into a thousand shards.

Shino did not ask another question however. With his voice low, he simply stated "It's because of you".

Yami looked up at Shino, wordless, and with eyes glazing over with water. His body became terrifyingly stiff, and with no form of a vocab defence, Yami could only stare and listen to all Shino had to say at him.

Shino studied his broken expression for a few moments, but pressed on "I'm right, aren't I? The monsters are here because of you" Shino gave a remorseful sigh, and shifted the toothpick to the corner of his lips "I thought it was odd, for someone like you, to act like this in this situation. I hoped that maybe you were cracking under the stress; after all, who wouldn't? But yesterday, with our conversation, you looked…guilty" Shino moved his hands to his hips "Listen, I don't know what you did, and to be honest, right now, I don't really care. But, answer me this, will you do anything to protect Yugi?" Yami said nothing, causing Shino to frown "Will you?"

"Y-Yes…" Yami managed to say breathlessly.

"Then, give yourself up".

Yami's mouth dropped open, gawping at him with his mind blank, hoping that he had misheard or misinterpreted his meaning. But Shino said nothing or gave any sign that he meant otherwise.

"Have you ever thought that, perhaps, if you were to disappear, then maybe the monsters will follow suit. After all, if they're after you, then there would be no reason for them to be here, would they?" Yami hung his head, staring down at their feet, as water began to fill his eyes "I know this isn't a choice one would like to make, but, think of it this way; you want to protect Yugi, then this is what you have to do. If you go, and take the monsters with you, then Yugi will be able to go back to normal life. We all will. Too many people have lost their lives, lost loved ones, due to this. Can't you at least be considerate enough to give back the world they had to leave behind?"

Yami still remained unresponsive, and his head was lower than before, making it hard to see his face unless Shino was to bend down "It's not your fault kiddo. The world just simply doesn't want you".

Tears finally spilt down Yami's face, and as he lifted his head to show Shino his distraught reaction, his body began to tremble underneath his own weight. He was unable to speak, attempting to open his mouth made him gasp unsteadily, and his mind was too pained to think of anything coherent to say regardless.

Feeling his knees quake, Yami pushed himself to run. Pushing past Shino, Yami rushed to the apartment door, throwing it open before shutting it behind him as he ran to the stairs. Loose tears fell from the corners of his eyes, splashing his hair and shoulders as they were grabbed up by the wind, and soaked through his clothes to give him the cold reminder of reality.

Shino listened, and waited until he could not hear Yami's feet, before leaning against the wall with a sigh. The toothpick in his mouth rolled around again, before he decided to take it out, and snap it into two with his fingers.

"Good kid" Shino murmured to himself, and opted to wait for Yugi to wake up, creating an explanation for when Yugi would realise Yami was missing.

It took a while before Yugi woke up. In his sleep, Yugi's hand had tried to scour for Yami's, unconsciously groping thin air until the message finally reached his brain. Yami was not with him. Flittering his eyes open, Yugi looked over his shoulder, and noticed the bed only occupied him.

He sat up, rubbing his eyes, and looked around the bedroom "Yami?" He gently called out. But with no response, Yugi rose from the bed, and left the bedroom to search for Yami.

As he walked out, the first thing he noticed was Shino, who was leaning against the kitchen counters with his face turned. He was quiet, eerily quiet, which began to worry Yugi as he approached.

When he reached the living room, he noticed that Yami was still missing, and that his disappearance did not seem to go noticed by Shino.

"Shino, have you seen Yami?" Yugi finally asked.

Shino said nothing, his chest pushing out as he drew in a breath, and keeping his eyes locked onto a particular spot. Without a response, Yugi tracked his eyesight, which led him to the front door. He stared at it for a few moments like Shino did, before it finally made sense, and his eyes grew wide in fear.

"Don't tell me…he went outside…" When Shino gave no answer to the question, Yugi felt his body clench with fear, and began to run to the door. But before he could even start moving, Shino held out his arm, stopping Yugi from reaching the door "Shino!"

"I'm sorry Yugi, but I can't let you go after him" Shino said, his voice heavy with regret and sorrow.

"Why not?!" Yugi demanded, fighting against Shino's arm "If we don't find him soon, he could be killed!"

"I know. That has to happen" Yugi stopped resisting for a few moments, looking up at Shino with weak eyes "I don't know how to explain this, but, Yami, he's the reason these creatures are here to begin with. I don't know how he's connected to them, but after watching him, listening to his illogical pleas, I knew there was something odd about it. He pretty much admitted it this morning. I'm sorry Yugi".

"So we're supposed to let him die?! Is that it?!"

"It's the best choice we have!" Shino declared, now facing Yugi, as tears began to run down the young boy's face "I know it's not an easy decision, but you have to think of the bigger picture here Yugi. If Yami were to be taken away by those monsters, then there's a good chance they'll disappear for good, and we'll be saving the lives of thousands of people. We can't ignore that just to save the life of one. Yugi, I'm asking you to make the right choice here. We can protect the world by doing this, and the innocent lives it has, you understand, right?"

Yugi kept his gaze locked onto Shino's, his serious expression never wavering or changing to show any other emotion, reiterating that a human's life could be juggled so effortlessly in a decision.

After staring at his stern eyes, Yugi hung his head, and mumbled "I do. You're…you're right…it's for the best" Seeing the tear streaks down Yugi's face, Shino gave a sigh and lowered his arm, figuring Yugi would drown in depression for the day. But Yugi lifted his head up once more, still crying, but with a determined furrow to his brow "But I don't want to live in a world without Yami!"

Yugi made a dash for it, his sight set on the door again. Shino made a grab for Yugi, but made the mistake of using his injured arm to catch him, so let go of him as shocks of pain coursed through his flesh. With the opening given to him, Yugi threw the apartment door open, and ran as fast as he could. He barely touched the stairs, and when he was out on the street, hesitated only for a moment as he picked a direction to go down.

_I can't let this happen_ Yugi thought as he ran, barely able to turn a corner he reached. _Even if Shino is right, that if Yami were to die the monsters would go away, and that everyone could be saved, I can't let Yami die. I know this is selfish of me, and I'm sorry for that world, but Yami…is the most important person in my life. I can't let him go._

Though he had no idea where Yami would go, Yugi kept his feet moving at all cost, hoping that they could take him to Yami at least.

Yami was sat in what he presumed was a park. The trees and grass had turned to ash grey, destroyed by which ever monster had strolled through, and turned it more into a graveyard than a beautiful park. Yami was huddled up in the middle of the remaining path, knees brought up to his chest, as he stared distantly at a spot in front of him. Dried tear marks were present on his cheeks, his crying having finally stopped when he exhausted his mind from hysteria, but as he began to regain strength again, so did his thoughts come flowing back.

"_The world just simply doesn't want you"._

A spill of water flowed down from his eyes, and Yami did his best to clench his teeth tight, trying not to make any noise. But as the task became harder to do, Yami dug his head into his knees, sobbing as loudly as he could into his clothes.

After a few minutes of crying, the ground began to shake, followed by the heavy thud of feet. Yami stayed still when the sound came to a sudden silence, before curiosity got the better of him, and he slowly uncovered his face from his knees.

A monster stood in front of him. Tall as the buildings around him, the black quadruped stood over him like a tower, three red insect like eyes staring down at Yami, without a sound going between them. After several moments of inspecting each other, the monster's back erupted, many tentacle like appendages breaking free and waving in the air, ready to attack at the right moment.

Knowing he had no will to fight back, Yami hung his head, feeling his tears run down to the tip of his nose. As his body began to quake, Yami gripped tightly to his body, hoping to keep himself steady.

"Was I…in the wrong?" Yami choked out, his throat becoming painfully filled with his own saliva, which made talking all the more difficult "I didn't mean to hurt anyone! I was just…so lonely! I wanted to be free, to be happy, to be liked, to be…!"

"_It'll be okay Yami. I'll look after you from now on; we'll stick together, right?"_

"I just wanted to be loved!" Yami bellowed, doubling over so his forehead was near touching the ground, as his stomach began to ache, pushing out the most tears his body could take "Why am I not allowed to be loved?! Why must I be alone?! Why?! What did I do?! Why can't I be normal?! Be happy?! Why can't I live?! Why must I be forgotten?! WHY?!"

Yami collapsed into tears again, letting the water stream and soak down his face, as he wept openly in front of the creature. The monster watched him cry for a while, its eyes studying his every movement, determining whether or not it was meant to be a trap or an easy picking. Once Yami managed to take in a few breaths, he was able to talk again, albeit broken and shaken.

"Kill me" Yami managed to say, shaking a few of his tears away "No one wants me; this world doesn't want me, so kill me now!"

The monster stared at him, each eye blinking in different times, before coming to its final conclusion. Its front right leg lifted up, the claw like hand it used to move on dangled lifelessly, eager and ready to grab its victim in front of it.

"Yami!"  
Hearing the voice, Yami sat up, and turned around to see Yugi running down the road. Yugi attempted to pick up speed, hoping to reach Yami faster, but often tripped over his feet, unable to keep his balance. Seeing his friend so desperate to reach him brought more tears to Yami's eyes, but out of joy rather than dismay.

"Yu-"

The monster's claw grabbed Yami's head, lifting him up as if he were a ragdoll. Seeing his friend in such a defenceless state, tears fell from Yugi's eyes, as he watched the monster eye his collected prize.

"No! Let Yami go!" Yugi pleaded as he ran towards them, no clear plan in his mind, his only objective to free Yami from its grasp.

The creature ignored Yugi, and with one swift movement, pounded Yami's body to the ground. Pain coursed through Yami's body, but as he heard Yugi's distressed voice move ever closer, he did his best to ignore his pain and try to fight against the hand that was still wrapped tightly around his head. He tried to push himself up, thinking that if he levered himself up enough, he could find a way to escape from the grip. But the demon forced a lot of weight into its one leg to keep Yami pressed against the ground, and even the sharp claws began to close in tightly, scratching and clenching him, Yami was certain his skull would collapse in on itself if he did not do something quickly.

"Leave him alone!" Yugi continued to plead, now in front of the monster. The beast moved one of its eyes to stare at Yugi, seeing no threat to him either. The plump tentacles from its back swooped down, snatching Yugi off from the ground, and lifted him high into the air. Yugi gave a scream when he was caught and began squirming to try and break himself free, but every time he moved, the bind around him grew tighter with the intention to squeeze the life from him.

Yami glanced up at Yugi, barely able to see him from between the claws, but could see the danger he was in.

_At this rate, Yugi will be…!_ Yami closed his eyes, and with his hands palm down to the ground, began to force his body up from the ground. The sudden action had caught the monster off guard, and as its eyes turned to look back at Yami, saw that he managed to overcome its leg, overpowering the force it had tried to sustain to keep him pinned down. _I don't care what happens to me, but, I'm not going to let Yugi die! Not like this!_

As Yami had managed to sit up on his hands and knees, the beast had tried to administer all the strength it had in keeping him down, but it was an effortless plan. Once he was upright by his own hand, wings sprung forth from Yami's back, long, golden bird like wings, which seemed to illuminate the dead surroundings. At the sight of the angelic wings, the monster immediately released Yami, giving a scream of horror as it backed away.

Yugi could only stare astonished, watching as Yami stood up, and as his wings swayed, loose feathers fell and floated away like specs of stars. The truth, though blindly in front of him, seemed like a ludicrous dream. Yet, Yami was standing in front of the monster, adorned with his new set of wings, twice the size of him, and as bright as the sun could be. What he was Yugi was still unsure about, but he became frighteningly unsurprised that Yami could handle the situation.

With his presence turning defiant and intimidating, Yami gave a small jump, and began to lift into the air. His wings began to beat, causing any and all loose feathers to spur off into all directions, causing the once cloudy sky to be littered with golden light. As Yami hovered on the same height as the monster, it gave a whine sound and cowered, but still kept Yugi as a hostage.

"You better let Yugi go!" Yami warned "Right NOW!"

Yami drove his foot into the first eye of the monster. The pressure forced the eye to push back into its socket, it's one blood red colour now coated in, what Yugi presumed was the creature's blood, a dark grey colour that washed out of its socket like a waterfall. It gave a deathly scream, stumbled back, as its damaged eye continued to bleed profusely.

With Yugi still a hostage, Yami did not falter in his attack, and swung his leg to strike the next eye on the line. The red eye split at the contact of his foot, a spray of dreary blood flew out from its broken eye. With another screech of pain, the tentacles on the monster began to flick into a fury, letting go of Yugi in an instant.

Yami swooped down to Yugi, catching him before he made contact with the ground, and took him away from the bloody mess. As Yami's feet touched the ground, Yugi was placed down alongside him, and both watched as the beast staggered back in fear and pain. With the blood pouring out in masses, the beast began to sink into the ground, dispersing into the dead grass and leaving its pools of blood spread out around the surrounding area.

"It's gone…" Yugi whispered.

Yami gave a sigh, his wings curled against his back, before disappearing altogether. When his wings dissolved, Yami began to fall forwards, but was quickly caught by Yugi who steadied him up.

"Yami! Are you alright?"

"Never realised…getting angry takes a lot out of you" Yami gave a breathless chuckle, but lifted his head up to smile at Yugi "I'm glad you're okay though".

Yugi managed to give a smile back, hugging Yami tightly "I'm glad you're okay too".

Yugi held Yami for a while, keeping him steady as he regained his strength, but more so because Yugi thought, for a brief, terrifying moment, he would never be able to hold Yami ever again.

Once Yami regained his composure, and assured Yugi that he could walk on his own, the two let go of each other. Yugi looked around at the empty park, half expecting to see more monsters and creatures start to swarm them, but it seemed that they were protected for the time being.

"Come on Yami" Yugi grabbed Yami's hand, giving it a comforting squeeze "Let's go home".

As Yugi turned to walk away, he stopped when he felt Yami's hand pull, and turned back around to realise Yami had not moved. He was as stiff as a statue, and stared out to an unknown place in the distance.

"Yugi…am I…not needed in this world?" Yami asked quietly "I've always…lived in the darkness. Afraid, without a direction, and alone. So…I-I wanted to meet other people, but, because I left my duty this…" Yami's hand squeezed Yugi's hard and began to shake under stress again "I-I didn't mean to hurt anyone…I just…wanted someone to like me, to have some sort of value for my existence. But I guess I was wrong. I'm not normal like everyone else, I'm just a stupid…selfish…!"

"What's wrong with that?!" Yugi moved round to face Yami, giving him a stern gaze "What's wrong with wanting someone to like you?! That's normal isn't it?! It's natural to want to be with others, so that makes you normal Yami!" Yugi took hold of Yami's other hand, and fitted his fingers in between Yami's "You are needed Yami. I need you most of all. If you were to disappear, I don't know what I would do with myself. Isn't that enough? I like you Yami, and I don't want to see you go…"

Yami felt his cheeks burn, but turned his head away stubbornly "But…if I were to go, then the monsters would too…"

"It doesn't have to be that way!" Yugi reasoned, squeezing tight to his hands, determined not to let them go or let Yami go "If we work together, we can come up with a better solution, we can save the world together. You don't have to sacrifice yourself for something you can't guarantee. Please, trust me on this Yami. I don't want to have to lose you".

Yami glanced back at Yugi, seeing his happy smile radiant his face, something that Yami had desired to see many times again. Encouraged by Yugi's cheerful demeanour, Yami managed to give a smile back, and clenched Yugi's hands back.

"Okay, I trust you" Yami replied. He then leant in close, putting their faces mere inches away, and their hot breaths touching over their skins "And, I promise I won't worry you again. Just as long as you don't do the same, promise?"

"I promise Yami".

"Good" And leaning in quickly, Yami pressed his lips against Yugi's, to give him a loving kiss.

_Best choice: The best choice is decided by what is considered morally right to the individual. It is justified with no outside interference and no affiliation to the situation that requires the right choice. The best choice is required for the benefit of thousands upon thousands of people._

_Right choice: The right choice is dictated by the heart of a certain individual; the right choice grants the user the feeling of being whole, sound, and complete. The right choice is man's angel in disguise._

* * *

Holy shit this is long. And I know there may be one shots longer than this one, but compared to me, this is hella long. Twenty-four pages in total, damn!

Sorry if this one is a nuisance, I honestly didn't expect it to go on so long, and I felt it would be too awkward to split it into an OVA. But, I hope, if you did manage to read through all of it, that you enjoyed it nonetheless! I'll get back to working on something real soon.

In the meantime, review if you like, and I'll see you in the next story! Take care.


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